American Labour, France and the Politics of Intervention, 1945-52 Workers and the Cold War

Author:

Burwood, Stephen

Year:

1999

Pages:

296

ISBN:

0-7734-8232-6978-0-7734-8232-6

Price:

199.95

From 1945, American labor unions actively sought to influence and alter the internal affairs of union organizations in other countries. France was of particular concern. The election of a Communist government looked quite likely. American labor actively intervened in the French labor movement to prevent such an eventuality and to remake it in its own image. This book asks the question why, given its incredible power, American efforts were not more successful. It explores the differing political cultures in which workers in France and the USA were steeped and which guided their outlooks and actions. The French workers' movement was devastated in this period. How culpable was American intervention? . The study uses archival material not previously examined, including personal papers, internal union letters and memos, contemporary union documents, journals, convention proceedings, memoirs, autobiographies, newspaper reportage and contemporary analyses.

Table of Contents

Foreword by Melvyn Dubofsky
1.The Political Cultures of American Labour to 1947
2.The Political Cultures of French Labour to 1947
3.American Labour, Anti-Communism and The Marshall Plan
4.French Labour: Internal Conflict, Class Struggle and the Cold War
5.Clashing Political Cultures: American Labour Perceptions of the Success of Intervention
6.French Labour Attitudes, The Marshall Plan and the Trade Union Struggle
7.Conclusions and Consequences
Endnotes
Bibliography
Index